BMW Razes Roof on i8 Spyder, Installs Razor Scooters to Boot

The BMW i8 plug-in hybrid isn’t set to go on sale until 2014, but that hasn’t stopped BMW from ripping off the roof to create a Spyder variant of its conceptual super coupe.

The third concept in BMW’s new line of alt-powered, i-branded vehicles, the i8 Spyder will debut at this month’s Beijing International Auto Expo packing the same mix of plug-in hybrid drivetrain technology as its coupe counterpart.

That means a 223-horsepower, turbocharged 1.5-liter three-cylinder gasoline engine mounted amidships and partnered with a 129hp (96kW) electric motor powering the front wheels. A trio of driving modes allows the two powerplants to work alone or in conjunction, with the low-performance, all-electric setting limiting output to the front wheels and delivering up to 19 miles of gas-free motoring. Electric juice is provided by a 7.2 kWh lithium-ion battery pack spanning the middle of the vehicle, which BMW claims can be charged in under an hour and a half. Crank the drivetrain up to maximum performance mode and you get the full 354 hp and 406 pound-feet of torque, enough to hit 60 mph in a little over 5 seconds. But the Spyder isn’t without its compromises.

Like other convertibles, the removal of the roof requires additional bracing to keep the chassis from going floppy. That means more weight and the potential for dulled performance. In the case of the i8 Spyder, overall tonnage is up by some 330 pounds over the coupe, requiring an additional half-second to get to 60 mph, but BMW claims that the Spyder’s additional pounds haven’t affected its all-important 50:50 front-to-rear weight balance.

While the obvious change is the removal of the roof — rumored to be replaced with either a cloth top or duo of carbon fiber panels — new front-hinged, upward-swiveling doors replace the partial glass units fitted to the coupe and are much more feasible for the real world. Expect those to make it to the coupe as well.

The same goes for the interior, which has evolved from a highly stylized cockpit concept to something that’s teetering on the verge of production-ready.

Three “layers” span the interior, with the “comfort” section made up of the seats and storage areas, while the “technical” layer comprises the instrument panel, steering wheel and 8.8-inch, high-resolution central information display. Even the center console, which previously looked like something out of Tron, has given way to a more traditional setup, complete with transmission stalk, climate controls and BMW’s iDrive controller.

Included inside is BMW’s latest version of its ConnectedDrive infotainment and telematics system, comprised of a camera-based collision warning system, parking assistant and the all-new Traffic Jam Assistant, which can accelerate, brake and steer the i8 when traveling at low speeds in bumper-to-bumper traffic.

Another hint the i8 is inching ever closer to production is the increase in dimensions, with the overall length coming in at 4,480mm, a gain of 152mm (about 6 inches) over the hard-top, with width growing by 33mm (1.3 inches) and height gaining 72mm (2.8 inches).

What won’t make it to production is the pair of Razor-style scooters mounted above the engine bay – another hypothetical prong in BMW’s multi-modal transportation scheme – but then again, this wouldn’t be a concept without some kind of frivolous design frippery.